By Kirsten Hatton Staff writer
and women’s swimming and diving teams ended their regular season schedule Feb. 4 by visiting Catholic.
The men took second place as a team, as Catholic came away with a victory of 169-106. Freshman Shane Sullivan won the 100-meter and 200-meter breaststroke races and sophomore James Orzolek won the 100 freestyle race to lead the team in individual wins.
Senior Eric Lawrence and freshman David Grove teamed up with Sullivan and Orzolek to win the 200 medley with a time of 1:39.27 to begin the day. They were able to beat Catholic’s 200 medley team by 0.44 seconds.
Senior David Miller won the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:48.34. Senior Bill Crumrine won the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:01.37. Crumrine beat the second place Catholic finisher by 0.47 seconds.
On the women’s side, the River Hawks were able to post a 175-102 victory over Catholic. Their depth as a team allowed them to have numerous top three finishers in addition to their 12 first place finishers.
Sophomore Katie Willis won four races for the River Hawks including individual wins in the 50 and the the 100 freestyle, while joining seniors Erin McElwee, Ashlee Weingarten and junior Joann Butkus to win the 200 freestyle to open the meet. Willis, Weingarten, Butkus and junior Jess Jozefiak finished the meet by winning the 200 freestyle relay.
Individually, McElwee won the 100 and 200 backstroke races with times of 1:03.09 and 2:16.36, respectively. Weingarten posted a win of 1:01:04 in the 100 butterfly. Butkus won the 100 breaststroke.
Freshman Caitlin Kelly won two races for the River Hawks, taking the first spot in both the 200 and 500 freestyle races with times of 2:01.73 and 5:25.02.
Freshman Hannah Finton won the 1000 freestyle in 11:09.17. Sophomore Megan Duck won the 200 breaststroke in 2:34.06. Freshman Isabella San Miguel placed first in 1-meter diving.
The men and women are off from racing next week as they rest up before looking to take home team titles at the 2017 Landmark Conference Championships Feb. 17 to Feb. 19 in Germantown, Maryland.
The Susquehanna women’s team will look to continue its dominant hold on the conference championships as the River Hawks are looking for their seventh-straight conference championship.
Last year the team held a 157-point lead going into the final day and finished the event by a 195-point margin.
Lindsey VanKirk set a personal record in the 1650 yard freestyle with a time of 18:00.69.
Willis also had a strong performance on the day, as she won the 100 freestyle with a time of 52.98.
Duck also set a personal record on the day and moved to second in the Susquehanna record books in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:26.70, and then-senior Kelsey Lessard set an NCAA B-Cut time and school record of 2:06.56 in the 200 butterfly.
The meet came to a close with the 400-yard freestyle relay where Willis, Doherty, Jozefiak and Butkus swam to a school record and second-place finish with a time of 3:36.24.
On the men’s side however, the United States Merchant Marine Academy has had an even stronger hold on the championship, as they have won every year since the conference’s founding in 2007. With a win this year, USMMA would clinch their tenth-straight championship.
Last year, the Susquehanna men’s team was runner-up to USMMA with 639 total points. However, USMMA no longer competes in the Landmark Conference.
Sophomore Ryan Nathan took fourth in the 1650 freestyle and set a personal record.
Lawrence earned fourth in the 200 backstroke and was followed by then-freshman Matthew Lustburg who finished 12th. Both set personal records.
Orzolek had a day to remember during this meet last year, winning the 100 freestyle in 46.68 seconds, which was the second fastest time in Susquehanna history.
At the beginning of the season the men’s and women’s teams were both projected to finish first in the conference this year by the Landmark Conference Preseason Poll.
